NATIONAL POETRY MONTH | Tremayne Moore

April is National Poetry Month. Today’s featured poet is Tremayne Moore. Welcome to Written Voices Blog, Tremayne.

Tremayne, describe yourself for our visitors.

I am an accountant by profession and writer/speaker by purpose. I am a man who doesn’t mind showing your emotions. I have a heart for God and care for hurting people.

How do you find time to connect with God?

I find time to connect with God through prayer, fasting, personal study (sometimes particular verses, a specific book or the Bible – or as His Spirit leads).

When did you first discover you loved to write?

I first discovered I loved to write in my junior year in High School (this was the 1990/1991 school year). Our teacher would write a phrase on the board (ex: I feel like I don’t know….), and we could fill in the blanks and write what we wanted. Although English wasn’t my favorite subject, I loved the freedom to write in this manner and to my surprise, my teacher loved what I wrote, though it was very morbid.

When did you write your first poem?

In 1991. I was sitting in Algebra II with a classmate and I was trying to think of a Valentine’s Day gift for my high school crush. I bounced ideas of what to get her to my classmate and my classmate asked if my crush liked poetry. I was a well-known rapper in my high school and my classmate wrote lovely poems. The moral of the story is my classmate and I wrote a poem together which would be my first true poem and not a rap song.

Tell us about your current book?

My current book is Take It From Him: From Men of Standard & The Women Who Love Them. It was released in June 2011 and it’s a collection of poems with the intention of causing all to look into the mind of manhood. Hopefully, men will roll up their sleeves and ladies will take a closer look at the men they know and love.

Can you share a poem from the book?

Absolutely, this poem is entitled Who Said?

Who said that a man can’t be emotional
When God’s Word is more powerful than a devotional?
Is it just the women who are to be this way in a congregation?
And do we submit to their leadership regardless of the church’s denomination?
I know the stereotype is that more women are in church than men
It’s like that now, and from my understanding, it’s always been
When will we rid ourselves of these ridiculous labels?
And allow men to worship the God who is able
Real men believe, just like women do,
Jesus is the only name that frees us too

Who said that a man’s prayer isn’t as effective as a woman’s?
Haven’t they heard of David, Paul or Samson?
Unless he’s a Pastor or a Bishop; that doesn’t seem fair
Yet men seem to be held captive to this notion everywhere
The Bible commands that men and women are to pray and not grow weary
When you’re feeling blessed or when your life seems tired and dreary

Just because a man is serious about God shouldn’t make him a threat the ladies
When will we come together on one accord? This question isn’t an if, but or maybe
We are to complement one another, to show the world that we are one
So let’s join together and praise His name until our work on earth is done

We’re Kings and priests in the earth with no respect to gender,
Who can shut down Satan’s kingdom, rid the church of all pretenders
Who said it can’t be done? Only Satan would make that claim
He’s a liar and deceiver, under our feet in Jesus Name!

How did the concept for this book come together?

I was actually writing this book (which is the 3rd book in the You Can Take It series) and the previous book Take It From Her (the 2nd) at the same time. A lot of the poems for this book came about through my interactions with others, watching the news as well as reality shows in passing (i.e., while exercising at the gym) and thinking about the stereotypes that I see and hear from those who attend church.

What’s next for you?

To be released May 5th is my first novel addressing child physical/sexual abuse and teenage suicide (and how the church needs to cease from further injuring people who have suffered from childhood trauma).